


The Emperor's Confidant

by Castorre



Category: Final Fantasy XIV
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Hurt/Comfort, Mental Anguish, Porn With Plot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-24
Updated: 2018-01-23
Packaged: 2019-03-08 18:44:04
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,251
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13464273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Castorre/pseuds/Castorre
Summary: Four years hence forsaking Ala Mhigo to return to Garlemald, Zenos yae Galvus finally attains the two things he has fought fang and claw for: the throne and his long-lost friend. Things are not as they should be, history is changed, all because of the Warrior of Light, who said that one unforgettable phrase: 'I accept you'.But how does one accept sacrificing everything for a monster who may not even be capable of loving you in return?A canon-divergent, plot-focused fluff piece. Multiple chapters. Zenos may be slightly out-of-character to make fluff possible.





	The Emperor's Confidant

A loud thump, the sound of a body being cast upon the floor at his feet filled him with emotions he had long since forfeit. The struggle, the persistence to defy the bonds that held her - it was what had enamored him from the first. The beast’s inability to stop fighting, her willingness to destroy in the name of ‘good’. Of course, as Zenos saw it, good is what you make of it. His good motivation was the challenge of it all, the fight of a lifetime.. While hers was all about helping others and repelling the Eikons. She was a typical storybook hero; how a person so selfless, so giving, so _fake_ could exist he did not know. It disgusted him back then, yet now, he found it endearing. Perhaps t'was the nostalgia.

“Get out,” curled lips hissed quietly, eyes piercing the soldiers whom had bore her body from the cage she had shipped in. The Garleans saluted and did as was told, fearing retribution should they tarry too long.

Alone with her at long last! After all of the years of suffering and waiting. There she was, nearly exactly as he remembered her… she had aged little at all, then again, what was four years when you are young? The silken hair, the eyes that glare with defiance, the pouty lips that he had tasted before...

“How very long it has been, Warrior of Light.” He kneeled beside her, something an Emperor should likely not do, but he did not care about court or the spectacle of it all. Who cared what he did in private, in a room totally alone with his pet…

She tilted her head to look up to him, trepidation spread through her features as swiftly as she looked into his gelid eyes. Ah, the face of a man whom she assumed dead. He had been so eager to die after their final bout; so quickly had he taken the sword to his own throat, ready to release the strings that bound him to the mortal plane.

How vivid that moment still was. How many times had she recounted it in her head? For years did she recall it as the last time she saw him. The man who had left an impression upon her soul which no other could match... The man whose eyes questioned her when she refused to allow him the coward’s way out. Perhaps she was cruel. Zenos had been forced into the form of a monster since birth, forced to bleed the worthless for every drop. An experiment, a monster without end. And she had kept him in this world, free to terrorize without equal.

His fingers trailed over her cheek, cracked and dry skin roughed against her face. Yet the feeling did not cause her to recoil. No, she remembered those hands so well, the warmth and surprising softness they could wield. For now, however, the fingers released the gag that had been forced upon her during containment. The leather strap slid from her mouth, lips parting to finally be free of it. It slipped unto the floor, though his hand remained, brushed against the soft skin of the woman he had once called rival. His index finger slipped to her lips, pressing against the soft padding before urging it forward into her mouth.

Her face flushed and she automatically returned to previous encounters with him, his fingers probing but always returning to that one spot. She sucked against the finger, wetting it with her tongue as well. A smirk crossed his face, one of knowing and longing. She had missed him as well. No matter how much time had passed nor how frightened she may appear to be, they had become inextricably linked. Their bond was beyond that of enemies or rivals, after all. He withdrew, her mouth unwilling to yield him at first, but she released him nonetheless.

“Speak plainly to me, pet, that we may begin again from whence last we left without delay. Why would you allow me to escape? Especially given the horrors I subjected and subjugated with.” His eyes examined her closely, wanting to know the truth. And not just some paltry shade of the real truth, but her whole mind and heart.

“Because I meant it when I said ‘I accept you’.” A smile came to her face, but not one of happiness. It was mournful, as if tears stung at the sides of her eyes. She had given up so much because of that one decision. And yet, he had been worth it. He had shewn her what it meant to break free of a predetermined destiny. Nay, because of him, she would never be a weapon to those people again.

He sighed, perhaps to stifle the smile that grew at the corners of his lips. Without much ado, he released her from her bonds. She found herself quickly pulled up, feet coming to feel the firmament beneath them, and Zenos’ grasp helped her to do so. The warrior’s answer was so honest and forthcoming. How could he possibly question it when her face told him how glad she was to see him again.

“I notice…” She glanced him over, leaning back a bit to see all the way up. “You have new armor?”

“Ah, yes,” A hand rose, pushing hair out of the way of her ear as he lowered his head to brush lips against flushing cheek. He pressed his lips against her there, and trailed lighter kisses down to her ear lobe. “The Emperor's crown is quite gaudy is it not?”

She balked, unsure of what to make of his statement. He had never wanted to be Emperor, he had far too much fun killing to be king. And yet, he was wearing that same armor she had seen when she had the misfortune of meeting his father in the Sea of Clouds.

“You seem taken aback. Not for nothing, I do know I voiced my discontent with the position. And yet, given the words you spoke to me back then, I felt I could not let the chance to seize upon far greater dreams slip by. You are much the reason I am here, why I am Emperor.” He stroked his hand against her neck, tender flesh that he much wished to taste met his calloused hands.

“Me?” She recoiled, backing away, away, away… No, this is not what she wanted when she gave him a second chance. She did not wish for him to return to the place that created him, cradled the monster within the womb, nourished it with blood and shaped it with steel. How could he not realize that he should have run far far from his homeland? Try living in peace and atoning for his wrongs, trying to rid himself of the mental harm that had forged him...

Her face spoke more than her mouth. Disappointment and questioning, so intensely did they rise to her features. A stark reminder of how very different the two of them were. Would what he wanted ever truly be? Or was he still bound to those cursed chains of fate, the tethers which created him? No, he would crush those with his own hands.

“I can see you have misgivings, but do not fear.” Zenos stepped forward, wishing to place his hand against her yet again. She did not continue to flee from him, at least. He took her face into his hands, palms pressed against her jawline. “My goals are not for base madness, I assure you. Trust me.”

She could barely stand it when he stared at her with such intent. It felt as if she would be swallowed by a pitch blackness. But her heart strummed against her chest and blood rushed to her cheeks. His face was so close now, too. That long, thin nose and those lips… oh the lips that pressed against hers demandingly, the tightening of his hands as they slid down to her collarbone. The force with which he pushed against her nearly toppled them both, but the locking of lips was as fiery as they came. A grunt escaped him as she tore away after a moment, devoid of breath from the intense bout of mouth and tongue colliding. He gave her a short reprieve before dipping down again, wishing to partake of her once more.

Yet she denied him, and a look of surprise or perhaps hurt flashed on his face for but a brief second. He opened his mouth to question but she spoke first.

“Pray forgive me, but I have not eaten in some few days.” He averted his eyes, a hand coming to rest upon his chin. She tilted her head, wondering what machinations he intended upon subjecting her to just for the simple request of nourishment.

“I shall summon something for you, then. And, before we go any further, perhaps you would do well to bathe, since it seems as if you have not done that in some days either.” A haughty grin crossed his features, earning a look of annoyance from the Warrior of Light. But oh, she would not deny that she would love a hot bath after the days of lying in a stifling cage. “No objections? Good, then wait here.”

Some time passed, yet before long the feeling of anxiety and her tense muscles relinquished under the warm flow of water and a full belly. An oversized robe, stolen from a linen closet, is good enough to cover up with for the time being. Though, it smells far too much like _him._

Speaking of… she sank into the robe as a door opened, only her eyes peered over the top of the collar along with her damp hair that stuck to her cheeks. Zenos’ eyes immediately fell towards her, and he had to suppress a laugh, seeing how ridiculous she looked.

“Would that be one of my robes? A slight bit ill-fitting I would think.” She had perched herself upon an armchair, hands grasping knees pulled to her chin. The door slid closed behind him as he sauntered towards the Warrior of Light. She pressed herself against the cushioned back of the chair, retreating yet again. “Will you always shy away from me so? I do not wish to harm you, girl.”

She glanced away, wet hair sticking to her neck in small strands. Zenos’ hands rose to remove his headpiece. She could never understand Garlean style. That headpiece, with its two angular horns and sharp edges that looked so uncomfortable… it was not much different than nearly all of the furniture and architecture she had witnessed in so far. There was little comfort or warmth to be had in the suite, and twas not by her choice that her rear now tingled from lack of blood flow. Gods, why was the bottom of the chair so stiff? Why was the room so dark? Why was the bastard in front of her so attractive? None of it made any gods be damned sense.

The crown was pushed upon a table, Zenos’ inability to care how roughly he dropped it earned a loud thump as metal dug into metal.

“Well? Have you rested enough? You’ve eaten, bathed…” He drew closer to her again, propping his knees on both sides of her legs, holding himself stable by grasping the back of the chair. She refused to look him in the face, not when he was that close. A silent moment, of him just hovering over her seemed to steal more and more of her breath as the quiet extended.

And then, her name, spoken so plain and gently through those lips of his. It startled her enough to gain her attention. And she realized she had not heard her name spoken in such a way in so long - with respect, with kindness. Had he truly changed enough to be capable of such things?

“Yes?” Her words trembled as his presence warmed her body in ways she had forgotten.

“Do you remember how we made love before? In the royal menagerie?” His face drew closer to hers; his breath was clean and hot. And, suddenly she was trapped yet again.

“That was hardly love making. You rawed me.” She glared him through, questioning what exactly he considered ‘making love’. “Besides, nothing could have been less romantic than being caught… like we were.”

“That just made it better.” Zenos smirked, recalling that impassioned moment. “It felt like what love making should, I would think. I was so enthused I ripped your clothing off, left you panting and begging.”

“Left me in a gaol with the brand of traitor and a death sentence.” Her voice cracked angrily as he felt spittle glance his chin.

“If I had left you, you would actually have been executed. If I did not care, you wouldn’t be here.” He rose and turned away from her; his posture seemed to straighten overmuch as he headed for a cabinet. She clenched her teeth, recalling those awful years in that gaol. She was sure he would never understand what exactly she had sacrificed for him.

He pulled a bottle from within the cabinet, along with several shot glasses. He gave her that crooked, half-genuine smile that was all he was capable of.

“Let us celebrate our reunion, my friend.” He poured himself a shot and downed it immediately, following by another. “And then, let us form a more physical union.”


End file.
